1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to musical drums and, more particularly, to an improved percussion device that can be employed as a drumhead in combination with a conventional drum shell or separately, as a hand held instrument.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The drum, which we understand and appreciate primarily in a musical context, originated thousands of years ago. Then, much more so than now, drums were used as a means of communication to enable people in distant villages to speak to one another, e.g., send messages and warnings, and the like. The earliest drums were likely fashioned from hollowed out logs. Animal skins that were stretched across the openings served as the contact surface or batter head. Drums have evolved to the instruments that we are familiar with today, including the more contemporary toms, snare drum and bass drum, and the ethnic percussion group of instruments, including the conga, bongo, djembes and others.
Toms, snares and bass drums typically comprise a cylindrical shell usually fashioned from wood, metal or a synthetic material. A separate drumhead is attached and covers one or both ends of the shell to act as the contact surface for producing the desired drum sounds.
Drum shells are constructed so that the shell wall, which is normally annular, is orientated perpendicularly to the plane of the drumhead. A conventional drumhead is formed and bent at its periphery to enable tension to be applied at right angles, i.e. by employing a plurality of devices such as drum lugs, connected to the shell to pull at the periphery of the head (in a direction normal to the head surface) to stretch and tension the film. The direction of the tensioning effort is coincident with the head""s vertical axis, more specifically coincident with the generally vertical plane of the bent or angular portion of the section of the head disposed around its periphery.
In general, conventional heads comprise a vibratile sheet or membrane, which is stretched over an annular hoop having an inner and an outer rim defining a channel. Typically, the channel is filled with a type of adhesive or resin into which the bent peripheral portion of the drumhead is inserted. The adhesive or resin is then permitted to cure, enabling the film a fixed and secure connection to the hoop.
The drumhead is placed over one end (or both ends) of a drum shell. A standard rim mounted counterhoop is then placed over and in tight contact with the annular hoop to secure the drumhead to the shell. The counterhoop is then employed in combination with any suitable tensioning mechanism to tension the drumhead, as necessary. Pre-tensioned or pre-tuned heads are assembled with the drum shell in the same fashion.
Placing a drumhead over a conventional shell involves engaging the head with the shell""s bearing edge, which comprises the outermost end section(s) of the shell. The process of tensioning the head requires the film or membrane to be pulled and stretched tightly across and against the bearing edge. The sound produced by the head directly relates to the shape and hardness of the bearing edge, and the friction the edge creates. The vibrations that produce the drum sound are the result of these characteristics. However, xe2x80x9cfriction tension,xe2x80x9d as this relationship is often called, has a number of drawbacks. Pulling the head against the bearing edge will usually wrinkle the film, which can cause distortion in the sound. Also, aspects of the sound, more precisely the vibrations, are likely to be absorbed by the bearing edge and the drum shell, which diminishes the sound intensity and the quality of the instrument.
A hand drum, such as the kind disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,349,891 to Belli, is an example of a conventional drumhead that is embellished or improved to enable the head to be adapted for different uses, such as in combination with a conventional drum shell. This device may also be employed independently as a single headed hand held instrument, which serves as both a shell and a head in one integrally formed unit. In either case, however, the walls of the shell are conventionally oriented at a right angle generally relative to the horizontal axis of the head.
Thus, it is desirable to provide a versatile and unique drumhead construction for use separately as a hand held drum, or for use in combination with all types of pre-tuned and non-pretuned drums, including, without limitation, toms, snares, bass drums, congas and other ethnic drums. As a hand held drum in its preferred embodiment, the instrument employs a construction in which the strike or contact surface of the head, i.e., the film or membrane portion, is situated in a co-planar orientation with a separate hoop component, which bonds securely to the top and bottom surfaces of the film and additionally functions as a drum shell. This improved instrument enables the tensioned flat film, which combines with a flat shell, to vibrate significantly more freely than the film is capable of doing when simply joined with a standard rim mounted counterhoop in combination with a conventional shell. Without the drawbacks normally associated with xe2x80x9cfriction tension,xe2x80x9d the improved instrument produces sounds with more quality and integrity of tone.
The invention also has other applications. Employing proper support means attached to the inside of the shell wall, the drumhead can be supported and fixed in place at the shell opening, near or substantially even with the circumventing edge. The improved drumhead can also be adapted over the rim portion of a conventional shell and then mounted on the shell using conventional tensioning mechanisms. A generally flat counterhoop, which is formed to coincide generally with the dimensions and configuration of the annular hoop, can be placed over the drumhead in contact with the hoop, and secured there by suitable means to assist in the tensioning process.
In its preferred embodiment, the present invention provides an improved drumhead comprising a substantially annular hoop having a generally planar upper member spaced apart from a generally planar lower member, a circumferential inner rim and a circumferential outer rim. Also provided is a film material or membrane for constituting a drumming surface, which extends flat across the area defined within the circumferential inner rim and the circumferential outer rim. The film material is generally co-planar with the annular hoop.
The drumhead, either in its flat film or bent film embodiment, is adaptable for use with a large variety of percussion instruments including toms, snare drums, bass drums, tambourines, congas, bongos and many other types of ethnic and other drums. The invention can also be employed separately as a hand held drum with the flat annular hoop section of the instrument functioning as a drumshell.
The drumhead can be pre-tuned or tunable. Tunable embodiments of the invention require a tensioning mechanism, which may include any suitable bolt or rod that can be inserted into the plurality of spaced openings fashioned within the body of the annular hoop. A lug nut or some other similar type of device joining with the tensioning bolt or rod, when rotated, will create a force normal to the plane of the hoop to cause a tightening of the drumhead for tuning the device. The tensioning mechanisms can be mounted either on the inside or on the outside of the shell in any suitable location to achieve the intended objective. A flat counterhoop may also be employed to achieve a proper tensioning of the head.
Construction of the invention can involve the use of a plurality of layers of film and high density fiberboard, which acts as the co-planar hoop in shell component. Suitable adhesive is applied to bond the layers. Mechanical means can be used to add strength to the adhesive bond.
Although annular is the preferred shape of the hoop and the film material, other configurations can be employed, including oval, rectangular, square, triangular and a variety of other geometric shapes.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument that employs a flat hoop that also functions as a shell to enable the device to be played independently as a hand held instrument.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument that combines a vibratile sheet of film material and an annular or another appropriately shaped hoop that are co-planar in their orientation.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument that combines a flat film or contact surface with a flat hoop or shell.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument that combines a flat film, which includes an annular shoulder formed below the rim of the striking surface, with a flat hoop or shell.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument wherein the surface to surface contact between the flat film and the flat hoop or shell is maximized.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument that enables the film component of the drumhead to vibrate more freely than the same film is capable of doing when joined with a conventional cylindrical tube-like drumshell.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument that eliminates the disadvantages of xe2x80x9cfriction tensionxe2x80x9d.
It is yet still another object of the present invention to provide an improved percussion instrument that produces sounds with more quality and integrity of tone.
Yet still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved percussion instrument that is adaptable for use as a drumhead with a wide variety of drums, including toms, snares, bass drums, congas and others.
Yet still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved percussion instrument that is adaptable for use with a generally flat counterhoop to enable the head to join with a conventional drumshell, and be appropriately tensioned.
Yet still another object of the present invention to provide improved percussion instrument that employs a pre-tuned and non pre-tuned convertible drumhead.
Yet still another object of the present invention to provide improved percussion instrument that is easy and cost effective to manufacture.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following specifications when considered in light of the attached drawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated.